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Jane Fonda Reveals Katharine Hepburn Once Told Her: 'You Never Could've Made it Back Then'

In a Thursday interview on Sandra Bernhard’s Sandyland, airing on SiriusXM’s Radio Andy, Jane Fonda revealed the candid comments she once received from her late co-star.

“I remember Katharine Hepburn saying to me on the set of On Golden Pond, ‘You never could’ve made it back then,'” Fonda, 78, told the radio host. “She was a prickly one. I just wasn’t glamorous. She hated the fact that I didn’t put enough attention to how I presented myself.”

Asked if Hepburn was a stickler for details, Fonda simply responded that “she had a look,” adding the she learned being aware of your presentation is not always a bad thing.

“She taught me that self-conscious isn’t necessarily bad, that it’s important to be aware of how you present [yourself.],” Fonda continued. “Not just in what you have on and how you look, but your presentation as a human being in all levels was important.

Jane Fonda: ‘I Don’t Consider Myself Beautiful’

“I’m thinking I give her more credit than she deserves, but at least in how you look and what you dress, she felt was very important and she hated the fact that at the time I didn’t put any attention to it.”

While she may have picked up a thing or two about appearance from Hepburn, Fonda admitted to PEOPLE in 2014 during her PEOPLE’s Most Beautiful photo shoot, that it took her decades to feel confident.

“Am I surprised by how good I look at 75? Yes, I appreciate the compliment; I’m honored to be called beautiful. I don’t consider myself beautiful,” she told PEOPLE at the time. “Owning who you are, being good in your skin It takes a long time to get there. It took me over 60 years.”

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